


To Build A Home

by thejollymilano



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-04
Updated: 2018-03-04
Packaged: 2019-03-26 19:17:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13864278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thejollymilano/pseuds/thejollymilano
Summary: Rocket discovers what it means to have a family.





	To Build A Home

After what happened on Ego, the Guardians were all huddled up on The Milano, which they recovered from Berhert. They sat on the couch and chairs, and talked about their point of views on what happened.

Everything that happened was shocking enough to hear, however, the others seemed particularly taken aback on Rocket’s story.

“Let me get this straight …” Gamora rubbed her temples, sighing and leaning back into the couch. “You attacked a group of Ravagers-“

“Who were going to attack us,” Rocket interrupted.

“I am Groot.”

“And you were singing to my music?” Quill laughed at Groot’s comment.

“Shut up, Quill! C’mon Groot, I thought we weren’t going to  _mention that_!” Rocket whispered sharply.

“- got captured by said Ravagers, and Nebula,” Gamora continued, ignoring their previous comments. “Started a mutiny, and then you killed all of them?”

“Well when you put it like  _that_ -“

“There’s really no other way to put it.”

“Who asked you, Quill? Anyways, when you put it like  _that_ , it sounds a lot worse. They attacked  _us_ , tried to murder  _us_ , and then they were gonna sell us to that  _high priestess_  or something like that!” Rocket defended.

They continued to listen to Rocket’s story, then were creeped out by Gamora’s telling of how she and Nebula found the skeletons of Ego’s children in the taverns.

Drax told them all about how he gained a new friend, Mantis. Rocket listened as Drax retold how he called them a family before the battle, which made Rocket’s heart flutter. They hadn’t openly discussed it yet, and it was an  _unspoken thing_ , but Rocket knew that they were all more than a crew. They were family. He didn’t mind that at all - it was comforting.

And then it was Quill’s turn to share.

And Rocket could feel himself internally shattering.

His dad turned out to be a celestial bastard, who killed his children and was planning to use Quill as a battery.

Even though he was pissed during their fight while escaping the Sovereign and on Berhert, Rocket knew how much knowing his father meant to him. And it made Rocket want to punch something, just knowing what that asshole did to him.

Quill and the others were going through heartbreak and trauma. And Rocket wasn’t there for any of it.

Sure, he was dealing with quiet a heavy load himself, but he wouldn’t have been in that mess - none of them would have, if he hadn’t stolen those batteries.

‘ _This is all my fault_ …’ Rocket thought, his ears drooping. ‘ _If I hadn’t taken those damn batteries and if I just trusted Quill, we wouldn’t have split off. Yondu would be alive and his crew wouldn’t have gone hay-wire_  ….’

“Rocket?” Gamora asked, noticing Rocket’s sudden depressed demeanour.

“‘M fine,” he lied and jumped off the chair he was sitting. “I gotta … check something,” and with that, he went off to wander around the small ship aimlessly.

He needed to get away - he needed to be by himself as he felt his walls crumbling.

* * *

He was sitting a large window near the anterior end of the ship, overlooking the stars and planets that they were passing by. Such wonder and beauty flew past, and yet he could barley focus on the view.

All he could think about was that it was his fault. He nearly broke up their team, their family.

Rocket thought back to how he felt when Drax called them a family. Calmness. Acceptance.  _Love_. Those were a few of the emotions that were clashed together when it was verbally said they’re not just friends. It was chaotic, and they were loud, but he cared for them nonetheless.  _And he absolutely didn’t want to lose them._

“What are you doing here?” Rocket jumped at the sound of the voice and turned around to see Quill standing there, looking at him curiously.

“Shit, Quill! Nearly gave me a heart attack,” Rocket huffed.

Quill rolled his eyes and walked closer and repeated, “What are you doing?”

“Nothing,” Rocket simply shrugged.

“Yeah, I’m calling bullshit on that one,” Quill clicked his tongue. “Everyone’s wondering how you’re doing after you stormed out in an emotional wreck.”

“I’m just tired, so leave it.”

“Rocket,” he sighed. “I’m serious. How are you holding up? These past couple of days haven’t been easy on any of us.”

“I dunno,” Rocket shrugged, looking back out the window. “It’s just been a lot to handle.”

“Yeah,” Peter nodded in agreement and sat down beside Rocket.

“Are you-“ Rocket started but then hesitated. He took a deep, nervous breath and started again. “Are you doing okay after - after Yondu?” He whispered his name.

“No,” Quill admitted, and Rocket turned to face him and saw Quill was looking out the window as well. But then he turned his head and their eyes connected. “But I will be. Are you?”

“I want to be.”

“Talk to me,” Quill looked him dead in the eyes, signalling that he was fully attentive and wanted to know.

Rocket sighed, really craving something to drink. He didn’t normally talk openly about what’s on his mind if he wasn’t drunk. ‘ _But hey, what’s to lose_?’ He thought.

“You know I don’t do this, so bare with me, okay?” He waited until Quill nodded before he took another deep breath. “I’m sorry I stole the batteries. I didn’t know what I was thinking. I… I didn’t think that  _this_ would hold out for long. I stole ‘em in case Groot and I needed to go our own way again. It was a stupid move, ‘cause I trust you guys and you all mean a- a lot to me,” he stumbled on his words.

“And sorry for not trusting you to fly through the asteroid field,” Rocket continued. “I just can’t stop thinking about how if I didn’t do any of those things, maybe we wouldn’t have met Ego, maybe Yondu would still be alive!”

“Rocket,” Quill started after Rocket had to stop to breathe. “I don’t blame you for any of that - no one does. I made some pretty stupid decisions that day, too. As for Yondu? He saved my life,  _you_  saved my life, man. Yondu would have found a way to die in a reviving way, anyhow. If none of that happened, you wouldn’t have opened up to me like this, Gamora and Nebula would still be at each other’s throats, and Mantis would still be under Ego’s control. Hell, if we didn’t catch him when we did, the whole damn galaxy might be gone right now.”

Rocket’s eyes slowly filled with unshed tears and he turned his head away from Quill.

“It’s not your fault. None of it.”

It was at these few words that Peter spoke, when a tear fell from his eye.

Quill and the others had every right to be angry with him _. But they weren’t._

They had every right to hate him.  _But they didn’t._

They had every right to blame him.  _But they didn’t at all._

Were they friends? Of course, however, they were so much more than that.

They saved the galaxy twice  _together_ , they broke out of prison  _together_ , they spent all their time  _together_ , and they laughed, cried and fought  _together_.

Besides from the time he met Groot, this was the happiest he’d ever been. Being here with his  _family_ was all that matters.

Sure, they were loud and careless and didn’t appreciate all the newly invented bombs he left laying about the ship (even though they had grown used to it), but they were family. And they had each other’s backs, no matter what.

And there was  _no way in hell_  Rocket was going to let anything threaten their bond again.

“What was it Drax said about us again?” Rocket asked, needing further confirmation that this wasn’t all a dream. A very good dream at that.

“A family,” Quill answered, giving him a smile.

“Right,” he grinned back sadly, the tears dried, and looked back to the passing stars.

The Milano was their home, but it was them who were his  _family_.

Rocket was finally at home.


End file.
